Vehicle wheel and tire.



M. CLARK.

VEHICLE WHEEL AND TIRE. l

APPLIUATION FILED 00119, 1910.

Patented 0015.24, 1911.

MELVILLE CLARK,y 'OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

VEHICLE WIIEEL AND TIRE.'

Specification of Letters Patent.

'Patented' oct. yat, 1911.

Application led October 19, 1910f Serial No. 587,793; i

Tfr all ',wtonit may concern:

Be it known that I, MELVILLE CLARK, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State-of t Illinois, have invented certain new and use'- ful-,Improvementsl in Vehicle Wheels and Tires,` of whichkthe following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying' drawings, forming a part thereof.

f The purpose of `this -invention' is to provide an improvedconstruction of pneumatic and cushioned tires for vehicle 'wheels especiallyadapted for automobile wheels and thevllke. j

It consists in the elements and features of construction shown and described asindicated in the claims. A

In the drawings: Figure 1- is a partially vsectional side elevation of a segment of a wheel rim and tire thereon embodying this invention, the retaining guards being in par-t broken away toshow the lateral surface formation of the cushion and .pneumatic tire elements, and the latter being in part shown in section-axial with respect to the pneumatic tube; Fig. 2 is a section at the lline 2"-2 on Figl; Fig. 3 is an enlarged secl form of the engaging features of the rubber tion at the same plane as Fig. 2, showing the .tread and metalguard.

In general features, the construction shown in this application is similar to that shown in my pending application, No., 515,042, ledvnugust ce, 1909.

The drawings show lthe customary. wood fel'lygn, of the wheel, having the tire consisting of lateral metal guards B, B, which are formed with angle seats at their inner periphery,-which'result from the extension of the flanges, l, in the lplane of the wheel inwardly f. froml the. annular web 2, which encompasses the felly,-for seating at the opposite outer side corners of the felly to which said retaining guards are securedY by bolts or. screws 3, At their outer circumferences, the guards B, B, are each provided with an annularly projecting bead or lip, 4, hereinafter more particularly referred to, for engaging the annular lateral projections 5 of the tread membery C of the tire, which isiembracedbetween the two guards outside radiallyL with respect to. the wheel.

of the pneumatic tube or air-spring D, which is also embraced between the two guards, being seated upon them at its inner circumference and engaged between them by means of a dove-tailed rib D1, projecting .fromv its.v inner circumference, and entering between the proximate edges of the webs 2, 2,

of the opposite guards, said edges being undercut or beveled sof asl to form a dovetailed opening' to receivethe dove-tailed rib D1 ofthe tube D.` The two guards B, B, are

bound together' near their. circumference byy ti e-rods or bolts, 6, on which there are sleeves 7, for spacing the two guards apart, so that the two bolts may bel bound' tightly in 4place by theirv nuts ,8,l Without crowding the two guardstogether beyond the limit determined by thewlength of the sleeves. The tread member; C .has apertures 10 extending through it 'flom side to side at as many points in its circumference as there are bolts or tie rods 6, said apertures being elongated radially with respect to the Wheel to accom-- modate .thev yielding of the tire tothe load. The dimension of these apertures 10, ina direction circumferential with respect tothe wheel, is venough greater than thediameter of the sleeves 7, so that unless the tire creeps circumferentially about the wheel, there will be no rubbing of the sides of the apertures against the sleeves.

To prevent such creeping of the tread member, there are provided, projecting in` wardly from the guards B, B, studand roll abutments 11, which are accommodated in recesses 12, formed in the sides of the tread memberv C, said recesses being elongated These stud and roll abutments fit loosely within 'the lining or reinforcement 13, with which the recesses are provided, vto. save the rubber of the tread member from crowd and wear from said abutments.

The engagement of the pneumatic tube, by means of itsdove-tailed rib D1, between the inner'edges of the webs 2 of the guards B, is designed to be a firm engagement, preventing any slipping of 'the rib between the engaging webs, 2, 2, and sov preventing any creeping of the pneumatic tube D around the7 wheel.

\ such tubes for Aautomobile wheel tires',-sub

- rubbing of ythe tube'upon the rollers 15, un-

1 the body of the y of the guard is angle, forming an annular [recess orgroove l. the outer periph-nf.

eral edge or bead 20 of the projection 4, said 6.0 .v I 5 o f the bottom of the groove 18. The pur-v The abutments 11, 4engaging the tread member, as described, operatmg to prevent any creeping of the tread member, will measurably prevent not only the dlstortlon 5 of the .inner tu'be D, but also rubblng bel tween the outer circumference of that tube and inner circumference of the tread. l 3ut experience has demonstrated that notwithstandingy the precautionary measures de-p and designed to lbe permanently .j oined there-v to,said rollers being protruded just enough from the inner circumference of the tread member-,to receive thecontact of the tube. Thetube D being of the usual structure of stantially unstretchable,V so that underiniiation it expands only tothe definite limit determined by its fabric, anddo not occupy the entire space 'bounded by the guards B and thetread member' C, and is substan- ,'tially of the form shown in Fig. 2, which adapts them to rol-lslightly at its inner seating" onthe guards, and thereby there is avoided any. substantial slippage causing der the side stress experiencedby the tire in running on a side hill, or encountering an' obstacle at one side, because, in such action, the tube rolls laterally, to accommodate the crowding of the tread member C upon it, lwhich, is' greater at .one sidethan the other under the conditions noted.v

The particular form of the shoulders 45 which ,form the outercircumferences of the- `lateral projections 4 of the tread member C,

shown-in the enlarged detail view of Fig. 3, is that said shoulders are cut back nextl to tread member, forming a deep groove, 18, extending all'aroundthe tread member,

slightly cut b ack at its inner 19,- 4which affords a seat' for recess 4or groove, 19, however, being very ,muchgshallower than the groove 18, so that when the tread membergis inposition -between the guards, there is annular cavity or clear space left between the overhanging lip pose of this construction is to prevent' water v and sand working in between the guard and 4that such movement may and the overhanging lip 5.

the tread member, andililling up or stopping more or less of the cavity between the guards and the tread in which the tube D is contained, the entrance of water and sand to this cavity being a well-understood causeef injury to the tube, resulting in grinding 1t awayI until it bursts. When the li of the guard and the engaging shoul er are -matched to each other, so that lthey lit closely or approximately, any sand which enters between themis liable to be gradually fed by friction around past the side of the projections 4 of the tread, into the cavit in lwhich the tube D is located;but whent ere is a considerable space, such asis provided by the groove-18, the sand `which enters is thrown out'by centrifugal force as the wheel rotates, and this is the urpose-of/y the construction, which not on y causes sand, but

also water, to be discharged before it cree vs around into the inner'cavity where it wou d tend to cause the damage referred to.

Notwithstanding the provisions for reventing creeping of the tube, more or. movement is liable to occur; and-n order. not operate to rupture the tube at the point at which the inflating nozzle is attached, in viewofthe fact that such nozzle must rotrude outl throu h f i the felly and thereby e engaged with lt e.

latter, an apertre'22 is provided inthe web 2 of one or both of the guards, and coincident therewith, an aperture 28 in the felly,

through which the inflating nozzle 24' rotrudes, said. apertures in the web and elly being elongated circumferentially with respect to the wheel, so .as to accommodate alimited movement ofl the pneumatic .tube around the wheel. In order to-prevent the entrance of dirt through the elon ated aperture, and also .to guard the nozz e, a metal-- hood 25 is provided, secured to the 'felly exteriorly thereof and closing the .aperture n the felly and inclosing the nozzle.

-I claim: f

1. A wheel tire vcomprising lateral guards vand an intervening flexible and elastic tread;

member and vaninclosed pneumatic tube 01" L air spring, the tread member having dis-I tributed throughout its inner circumference l a multiplicity of housings embedded in said tread member, and transverse rollers: journaledfin such housings with their inner circumferences exposed for contact with the outer circumference of the pneumatic tube.

2. A vehicle wheel comprising, in combi# nationv with the felly, a tire vcomprising lateral guards and 'a tread member embraced between the guards, and a pneumatic rtube inclosed by the guards and tread member; an inflating nozzle attached to the pneumatic tube at the inner side; the guards and felly being apertured to permit said nozzle to protrude, such aperture being elongated my hand, at Chicago, Illinois, this 1st day circumferentially in respect to the Wheel to of October 1910. accommodate a. limited movement of the pneumaticv tubes with respect to the Wheel; 5 and a hood attached exteriorly to the felly,

covering such opening and the nozzle.

Invtestimony whereof, I have hereunto set- MELVILLE CLARK.'

VVtnesses M. GERTRUDE ADY,

\ JEAN ELLIOTT.

Copies of this patent may be obtained fox` ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington,l D. C. 

